Usually I just eat whenever I'm hungry and keep it to good portion size and clean foods...

Today for some reason, I could have eaten 5000 calories and still been hungry.

I'm not sure why, but if this happens again, should I give in and just eat until I'm full, or what?

Esp. after I did cardio I ate chicken (cooked in olive oil), tomato soup with a serving of pretzels, and some olives (probably about 400 calories) and I could have eaten another full meal of the same foods/portions or something else...oh, I had 1/2 a liter of water too.

Today I just rode it out and didn't eat anything more than I thought I should...my stomach wasn't growling, just a feeling like I wasn't totally full...whats with that? what should I do in the future?

I'm not an expert here but if I were I wouldn't give in and eat until your full. It's very possible that your not actually eating enough calories for whatver your goals are. I used to be in the same position as you and follow the same feeding guidelines, but when I finally sat down and figured out what I was eating, I had very little fat intake and about 1600 calories intake. Once I started keeping track and eating consistantly, the occassional, "i could eat an elephant" feeling went away. My suggestion would be to figure out exactly what your consuming daily and go from there.

Also, the after cardio meal you use an example; was it the same type and length of cardio you always do? If not then it could account for you being more hungry than usual afterwards.

Food volume.

If I find myself insanely hungry, I snack on those little bags of raw carrots. Or I chop up half a head of cauliflower and steam it for 2 minutes in the microwave.

If I can make it through the whole thing and still be hungry, then I know I've underestimated my calories for the day, and I should have a chicken breast or some yogurt or something.

Seriously, that's what I do to determine whether my cravings are hunger-based or mood-based.

If there was a big plate of plain broccoli sitting in front of you, would you be hungry enough to eat it? If the answer is yes, then you need more calories. We're not usually emotionally driven to consume vegetables.

I think it depends on what you grew up with.

My Dad would have eaten veggies/fruit the way others eat chips. He was perfectly happy to snack on raw veggies.

But to the food volume bit. Chicken,soup and olives may have your calorie goals for the day but it doesn't have much bulk. I don't get full on calories but on bulk. You can add 200 grams of carrots or brocoli or your favorite veggie and not add many calories. But the bulk amount of food fills me up.

I've had that too...especially when I do all-out HITT.

Could be because the metabolism is elevated so sharply from doing it.

Obviously the body is saying it has a need to be taken care of.

Sometimes the need is mis-interpreted.

I'll crave carbs after a session like that. But I eat and eat the carbs and I'm still hungry.

I've found that if I take a fast digesting protein and keep the carbs "simple" directly after the session the hunger pangs aren't so bad.

The type of HITT I do my legs and body are screaming after. And a lot of times I do my HITT right after a workout. Short, intense HITT and heart rate into the stratosphere.

Well...with a workout like that I've just blown my ATP and Glycogen stores and the muscles are wailing for some protein repair food.

My body is telling me " I want it now....not tomorrow ".

So I don't think the effect is a bad thing. I'd just be selective in what I ate after.

I use:-

Fast digesting protein
Simple carbs
Glutamine
BCAA's
Muti-vite
Lots of water.

just a feeling like I wasn't totally full...whats with that?
Leptin (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leptin) to a large degree.
Your calories...."may" be too low.
Your meal spacing "may" be too far apart.
Try more low calorie fillers: broccoli, celery, lettuce (actually a nice salad helps), fruit, etc...


If there was a big plate of plain broccoli sitting in front of you, would you be hungry enough to eat it? Ha, I can eat that any time of the day :drool: (but I'm a freak :o )

Food volume may very well be the problem. Next time I'll go get some cauliflower or do up some broccoli....I don't have a microwave.

If there was a big plate of plain broccoli in front of me, I would over cook it until it was very soft, add some soysauce, garlic-chili pepper sauce, and some zaatar and *devour* IT! :D!!

What's your water intake like, bro? I was just reading the other day that just a we bit of dehydration can create significant sensations of hunger.

And since your move, aren't you in a warmer, drier climate?

What's your water intake like, bro? I was just reading the other day that just a we bit of dehydration can create significant sensations of hunger.

And since your move, aren't you in a warmer, drier climate?
I live on the Meditteranean so def. wetter here than in Indiana or Ohio...it is warmer, in the 60s sometimes the low 70s during the day and the 40s and 50s at night.
I drank 4 liters yesterday, plus quite a bit of diet coke, and a liter or so of diet tea. I'm quite sure I'm not dehydrated.

Sometimes it can be a bit painful. Personally I use my diet-plan and follow it regardless how I feel. Sometimes I´m not hungry at all(and it feels like I cant eat at all) but I force myself to eat everything that was planned anyway.

Sometimes it feels like I could eat much more and I´m more hungry after the meal than before. But I force myself to eat as planned anyway and no more. Normally the hunger will go away 30min-1 hour after the meal in that case...

However...this is normal and must be expected if you are eating negative calories and cutting. The important thing here is to be prepared for it and focus on the plan. Your mind and your dietplan must be in control. Not feelings and signals(like hunger or lack og hunger) you get from your body.

At least this is the attitude I must have if I want to get progress when cutting.:)
But I know other people can be less strict, fanatical and obsessed and still get lean. So this is probably not good advice for everyone...